I Never Really Got... Great Pedals You Couldn't Get On With

randomhandclaps · August 2013

I was sorting out a cupboard in the studio today an I came across my Zen Drive. I've owned it for years, every now and then I get it out yet although I would agree it is a great pedal it just doesn't do it for me. That said, I keep it in the hope that one day we will click.

Is there a 'great' pedal that you just couldn't get on with?

Not that you thought it crap, over-rated or plain old snake oil. A pedal that you understand the love for and have seen other use beautifully but it was never going to be a Scott and Charlene type love between you.

John_P · August 2013

Strangely I feel pretty much the same about my zendrive - I can't bring myself to get rid of it though for some reason...

I used to think the suhr riot was very over rated but once I tweaked the loop levels on the g system is came to life and sounds great.

I can think of two pedals that I failed to get on with in the past - Ibanez SD9 and a keeley ds1 - both were purchases based on their reputation and both sounded bland to me - I assume it's the way I was using them but they didn't last very long.

mike_l · August 2013

Most Boss Distortion pedals, they don't sound right to me. They always sounded too harsh (Metal zone etc) I have a Boss Mega distortion which does the job, but is still a little harsh. I only use this for practise making sure I can keep strings quiet, and picking clean under a huge amount of background noise.

I am starting to like their O/D pedals now though - SD-1 and SD-2 both sound good to me.

spacecadet · August 2013

Well if either of you want to sell your Zendrive I'm here!

Can't think of a pedal I never bonded with. I can usually get "something" out of everything. Thats probably why I have so many!

digitalscream · August 2013

Bogner Ecstasy Red pedal - bloody fantastic bit of kit, but I'm just so used to getting all my basic dirt tones from the amp that I couldn't really deal with it in a meaningful way. Thankfully, I didn't actually pay anything for it

ICBM · August 2013

Any compressor

Boss CE-2

SansAmp GT2

Zodiac51 · August 2013

My Freekish Blues Alpha drive - great pedal, but for some reason it just doesn't sound any better then say, my Joyo Ultimate Drive, funny one that

[Deleted User] · August 2013

Electric Mistress flanger.

not_the_dj · August 2013

The Timmy/Tim. I've had both (the Timmy twice) but they've just never become a go-to pedal or had a permanent place in my set-up.

Weirdly the Lovepedal OD11, which some say is a Timmy clone, has clicked with me and it's one of my favourite drive pedals.

Similar story with the Subdecay Liquid Sunshine. I've had two (V2 and V3) and again it's just never managed to work it's way into my set-up.

I'm sure it's me though, but also they're pedals that are pretty easy to move on, so when I've been after something new they've be the obvious ones that'll sell.

IanSavage · August 2013

Ibanez TS9 - couldn't make it do anything in my rig that my SD1 couldn't do better. Would still try another one, but not at 3x the cost of the Boss...

randomhandclaps · August 2013

not_the_dj said:

The Timmy/Tim. I've had both (the Timmy twice) but they've just never become a go-to pedal or had a permanent place in my set-up.

Weirdly the Lovepedal OD11, which some say is a Timmy clone, has clicked with me and it's one of my favourite drive pedals.

Although it amounts to sacrilege I preferred the sound Lovepedal Amp 11 to the Timmy or Tim. They are virtually identical (bar small variance in the tone stack) but I think it is down to the 4558 chip vs the 4559 in the Timmy. In like for like circuits I have always preferred the 4558.

ICBM said:

Any compressor
Boss CE-2
SansAmp GT2

I have such a fierce hate of guitar compressors. When I was a youngster I used to think 'I love Gilmour's tones so I need a compressor'. I tried so many and detested them all. I was a source of great frustration. Now I listen to the Gilmour cleans or light drives using a compressor and realise that I don't really dig that tone.

monquixote · August 2013

I also didn't really gel with the Zen Drive though I didn't hate it either.

I don't think I've had many pedals I totally hated, just ones that didn't really do what I needed them for.

The Crunchbox was completely brilliant, but totally wrong for what I wanted.

bluechargeboy · August 2013

Cry Baby...um, no thanks. Got a CAE MC-404 now and I like it more, although it is ostensibly the same kind of thing. Of course, I never use it...

IvisonGuitars · August 2013

Boss Blues Driver. Just found it fuzzy and lacking.

I had a Lazy J Cruiser and was very underwhelmed with it to begin with, but after spending some time with it and really dailing it in, I love it.

Dave_Mc · August 2013

Zodiac51 said:

My Freekish Blues Alpha drive - great pedal, but for some reason it just doesn't sound any better then say, my Joyo Ultimate Drive, funny one that

LOL

I can't think of any of the classics offhand that I don't at least like, for certain things.

Kebabkid · August 2013

Line6 stuff, namely POD 1 & 2 and M series. They just don't seem to work for me with my favourite pedals but I also tire very easily of the sounds after a very short time.
Fulltone Clyde Wah Deluxe too

octatonic · August 2013

Fuzz Factory.

Impossible to set and forget.

martinw · August 2013

Klones.

Meh.

ICBM · August 2013

octatonic said:

Fuzz Factory.
Impossible to set and forget.

I just set mine to all knobs (apart from volume) at 12 o'clock when I'm playing live. Seems to work with more or less anything I play.

I'll also add - Voodoo Labs Sparkle Drive. I know some people love this because you can blend clean sound back into the 'Tube Screamer' to make it sound less boxy and compressed. To me it just sounded broken, like the overdrive was sitting on top of the clean, and separate from it. Easily the worst (for me) 'TS-type' pedal I've tried.

swlabr · August 2013

Had a love hate relationship with fulltone ods (both FD & OCD). Thought they sounded well, but never found the right moment to use them.

Drew_TNBD · August 2013

I have a Digitech Whammy DT and I think tech-wise it is pretty amazing. But I have to confess, I only really like Whammy on Bass. I think it sounds a bit crap on guitar, and so I never use it!

Bidley · August 2013

Another vote for compressors. I bought one years ago, put it in my signal chain, switched it on and fiddled with it, thought "what's the point in this?" and that was that. To be fair I don't play the right kind of music to warrant it.

MattG · August 2013

it would be a shorter list of things that i did get on with...
i couldnt get on with:
Ibanez TS-9
Boss DS-1
Catalibread DLS
Mojo Hand FX Rook Royale (the rook half anyway i loved the boost!)
and im not a fan of my joyo ultimate drive either it just makes me sound like a bon jovi reject with any dirt pedal and sounds like shite through a clean amp :S
also hate my compressor with any dirty sound, its great for rockabilly though

Love OCD's,valve sporkers and lovepedal elevan amps though... go figure

ICBM · August 2013

Bidley said:

Another vote for compressors. I bought one years ago, put it in my signal chain, switched it on and fiddled with it, thought "what's the point in this?" and that was that. To be fair I don't play the right kind of music to warrant it.

It's far worse than that for me - I actually quite like the sound they give when I'm playing in isolation, and at least a couple of my favourite players use them all the time. But live, I detest them - it feels like wading through treacle wearing diving boots. I can't stand the lack of direct dynamic control and always end up turning it down to the point it's not doing anything, or just straight off. Oddly enough overdrive/distortion (which is also highly compressed) doesn't have the same effect.

shady · August 2013

I managed to pick up a 'sought after' Boss FZ-2 for cheaps a couple of years ago.

The boost function was useful but I couldn't dial in an actual fuzz sound I liked, great for downtooned doom I guess...but fuck all else.

Catthan · August 2013

I never bonded with the 2 tube ODs I had, a zendrive 2 and a BK Tubedriver.

ThePrettyDamned · August 2013

Sadly, I've realised I don't get on great with the Marshall guvnor. It sounds amazing, but something doesn't quite feel right... I recorded it, and it sounded perfect yet it feels odd to me. I'm going to see if I can get a Duncan power grid or a boss dyna drive (both of which I do get on with) and see how I go.

I can make the guvnor work for me if I run a tubescreamer into it and it sorts the feels. I don't want to lose it because it sounds too good!

ThePrettyDamned · August 2013

ICBM;15818" said:
Bidley said:

Another vote for compressors. I bought one years ago, put it in my signal chain, switched it on and fiddled with it, thought "what's the point in this?" and that was that. To be fair I don't play the right kind of music to warrant it.

It's far worse than that for me - I actually quite like the sound they give when I'm playing in isolation, and at least a couple of my favourite players use them all the time. But live, I detest them - it feels like wading through treacle wearing diving boots. I can't stand the lack of direct dynamic control and always end up turning it down to the point it's not doing anything, or just straight off. Oddly enough overdrive/distortion (which is also highly compressed) doesn't have the same effect.

Try the visual sound route 66. I am the same as you, and have the effect where it does very little compression, but it does add a little something to the sound and everything sounds better with it on. Sorta a magic button for my clean tones.

That said, it's probably a clone of one you've tried already so maybe you're just anti compressor

ragingben · August 2013

I'm the same with the Guv'nor. Maybe I just never used it with the right setup, but I just can't seem to get on with it no mater what I do.

Col_Decker · August 2013

To be honest anything made by EHX. Electric Mistress, Fuzzes x3, POG, Chorus, etc. All sound great on their own but as soon as the band starts up it all goes wrong

MojoPin · August 2013

Had the Timmy twice and sold it twice.

Great pedal but the gain and eq controls were too much interactive.

That is a great feature for most, but a PITA for me!

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I Never Really Got... Great Pedals You Couldn't Get On With

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